The Bella Coola ambulance was only in-service 52 per cent of July, Lesley Pritchard, communications for BC Emergency Health Services (BCEHS) stated in an email.
The in-service average over the past year was higher, at 75 per cent, but was still equivalent to one week per month without ambulance services.
A recently-retired paramedic in the community, Jeffrey Snow, blamed the lack of coverage on a new staffing model that was introduced last fall.
The Scheduled On-Call (SOC) shifts are, in general, eight hours of work at full wages and 16 hours on-call for three-day rotations, Pritchard stated. The previous model relied almost entirely on paramedics carrying pagers whereas the new model sets regular hours for paramedics at the stations.
However, when staff are on-call they only receive $2 per hour, Snow said. Therefore, if there are no emergencies during their shift outside of regular hours, paramedics are only paid regular wages for 24 hours and an additional $96 for three 16-hour periods of on-call.
“We’re trying to encourage the community to step up and start being available to take these calls but the attraction for the SOC is just not there. And pay is not there. And so people can’t pay their mortgage on 24 hours a week pay,” Snow said.
BC Emergency Health Services were still working to fill the four permanent positions in Bella Coola as of Aug. 23, Pritchard wrote.
